Perhaps a flowing white skirt was not the smartest outfit choice for a wet and windy day, but sometimes fashion trumps function, and this morning I wanted to wear a flowing white skirt, dammit.

I began second-guessing my choice as the lake winds whipped the skirt against Betty’s grimy rack and fender, but by that time there was no turning back.

In a nod to function, here is my head and eye protective gear that rarely makes it into photos.

By the end of the day, the hem of my skirt was lightly soiled here and there, but nothing terribly noticeable from a distance. The real danger was the chocolate cake I enjoyed with lunch, crumbs of which inevitably got smushed on my lap.

I have a habit of writingeveryyear about how much I love fall, and this year will be more of the same. It’s such a perfect time for bike riding, especially for riding in full work clothes without arriving sweaty.

I enthusiastically pulled out from under my bed the two containers of cold-weather clothes and suddenly I have a whole new wardrobe. This week I will replenish my supply of black and brown tights, then I’ll be good to go through early spring. :-)

This week I burned my way through season one of Scandal on Netflix. Love! The best part of the show is the main character Olivia Pope, played by Kerry Washington. She’s uber-capable, confident, loyal and smart as hell – and also an amazing dresser.

As much as I love her style, I found myself thinking about the difficulty of wearing her outfits on a bike. She favors crisp white suits, sky high platform heels and wide leg pants.

So I put together my own interpretation of bike-friendly Olivia Popeness. I swapped out her wide-legged trousers for slim pants or a skirt to avoid chain disasters, her towering stilettos for pedal-friendly wedges, and her Prada bag for a Po Campo bag. I had to keep the white trench coat, so watch out for grease!

A few readers have asked me to discuss my favorite places to shop for pre-owned clothing. I estimate that approximately 75% of my wardrobe is pre-owned, as in secondhand/used/thrifted. I love pre-owned clothes for two main reasons: I can buy a lot more/better quality for less and I can minimize my contribution to the fast fashion system, the one that causes stuff like THE DEATH OF 1,000 HUMANS. (Please think about that for a few moments and consider how important cheap new fashion is to your lifestyle.)

Locally, I prefer Salvation Army on Grand Avenue. The goods are grimey, but if you sift through the racks long enough, you’re guaranteed to find some gems, like the $4 Burberry dress shown below. (Remember, “God made dirt; dirt don’t hurt.” Am I the only one who heard that a hundred times in my childhood?)

But since most of you do not live in Chicago, I’m sharing my favorite online shop.

And my choice is The Real Real, a site with daily flash sales of pre-owned designer items. When I say designer, I mean designer, with oodles of options among Chanel, Prada, Stella McCartney, Chloe, Givenchy, et al. (Thanks, rich people who wear a dress twice and then consign it!) This is not just about fancy labels. In my experience, these clothes are generally better made with higher quality materials, resulting in superior fit and longer lifespan. BUT if designer is not your thing, scroll past the flash sales to the “Contemporary Designer Sales” section – that’s where the real deals are: Diane von Furstenberg, Trina Turk, Nanette Lepore, Kate Spade, Marc by Marc Jacobs, Steve Alan, and a crap load more. Of course, these are not Salvation Army-level bargains, but that’s the price you pay for well-edited and dry-cleaned goods.

Through this site, I’ve found that I can buy used, high-quality designer items for the same price as new clothes at stores like Zara and J.Crew. And unlike with eBay, I never have to worry about authenticity and returns are accepted. Here are all of my purchases from the site to date:

(Oh my gosh, suddenly I wish I had my long hair back. Don’t you hate that? Too late now!)

Trust me, on my non-profit salary, there is no way I could ever afford all these beautiful clothes new.

As a caveat, the site can be addicting. Under no circumstances should you subscribe to their daily email – that’s a great way to get sucked into constantly browsing for clothes that you don’t need.

Currently, everything is on sale for 20% off. Woo-hoo! I myself snapped up two Diane von Furstenberg wrap dresses and a silk wrap top, along with a silk See by Chloe skirt. Now I’m ready for spring. :-)

A similar site I’ve been eying – but from which I’ve not yet purchased anything – is Vaunte. They also sell pre-owned designer stuff, but their prices are a bit higher and they do not accept returns. Womp-womp.

Do you have a favorite online shop for pre-owned clothes? Please share!

{If you follow the link to The Real Real or Vaunte and buy something, the site gives me a $10-$20 credit. Not a rigged blogger thing, just the reward they give anyone who refers another shopper. And credits are great because I already spent my clothing budget for Spring 2013!}

I have a fun new accessory for spring: a beautiful vintage silk scarf that Trisha brought me from her recent trip to Italy.

I used to associate silk scarves with my elderly Sunday school teacher from childhood, but Trisha wears scarves with such effortless chic, I realize now how stylish they can be. I drew inspiration from Trisha yesterday morning when deciding what to wear. The Italian scarf called out to me and allowed me to wear an all-black ensemble without veering into Lydia territory.

The 80 degree weather from Wednesday dropped dramatically to the 40’s, so it was back to tights and long sleeves for me. A silk scarf is lovely for warmer weather with a chill in the air. It’s also fun for bicycling, I learned. With the bright scarf whipping in the wind behind me, I felt a bit ooh la la.

Like a toned-down version of this. :-)

When I got to work, I pulled myself together by slicking back my hair, taming my scarf and throwing on heels that live under my desk. As demonstrated with this very classy bathroom photo.

Now I want to seek out more silk scarves. Lucky for me, they can be found a dime a dozen (almost) at thrift stores. Highly recommended for the civilized transportation bicyclist! (Just be sure the scarf is not too long – don’t want it catching on anything while cycling.)

After a very long winter/early spring, truly warm weather has finally come to Chicago. Yesterday was a whopping 85 degrees!

Bicycling in warm weather feels so different from bicycling in the freezing or even chilly weather. Over the past 6 (7…8…?) months, I’d forgotten how it felt. And there are lots and lots of other bicyclists out there, all of a sudden. Love it!

I picked out my lightest silk skirt and blouse to celebrate the occasion. I retired my black, winter Bern helmet for my happy, pale pink Nutcase helmet. (Unfortunately, I had a sweaty helmet hair situation by the time I returned home in the evening, as shown above.) I also pulled out my fingerless gloves, which I wear in warm weather to prevent discomfort from sweaty palms rubbing against cork grips, as well as to absorb some of the road shock.

That’s about it! Just happy to share my warm weather excitement. :-)

P.S. I’m really enjoying reading everyone’s personal take on the issue in the comments of yesterday’s post, Women, Bicycling and Makeup. Reader Bettina in Germany posted her perspective on her blog, Books, Bikes, and Food (hey, three of my favorite things!).

On Sunday, I biked 20 miles in a Zac Posen dress and four-inch high-heeled ankle boots. My day was full, including a trip downtown for a Joffrey Ballet performance and to the Logan Square neighborhood for my friend Sara’s Oscar party. Getting ready in the morning, I considered throwing on jeans, flat boots and a wool sweater, but decided to stay strong and dress appropriately for the occasions.

The (second-hand) dress conveniently zips all the way down the back from both ends, allowing me to create more leeway from the bottom while on my bike.

The weather was sunny and 30 degrees. For the ride, I threw on a cardigan, trench, cashmere scarf, gloves, and winter helmet. The trench coverage was helpful because the dress did ride up a bit while biking.

Once I got downtown, I was able to take the Dearborn protected bike lane for the final mile and a half. The city has a special snow plow to use for protected lanes and the lane was plowed, but sloppily and some areas were more clear than others.

And look! An SUV parked in the lane. This was the second one I saw. The city needs to: 1) create better signage; 2) build real barriers; and 3) ticket these drivers.

Okay, back to my happy place…

The ballet, American Legends, was beautiful and thought-provoking as always, as was the view from my first-row-balcony season ticket seat. (Thanks, Groupon!)

Leaving the ballet, I mounted my camera on Betty Foy’s handlebars and made a video of my ride on the Dearnborn protected lane and the connected Kinzie protected lane. I’ll post the video soon.

The Oscar party was fun (despite the host’s lame “jokes”) and I enjoyed biking home on empty streets at the end of the night, 12 hours after I left. My dress and heels were fun for the day, but I was happy to change into flannel pajamas. :-)

This morning, my friend Elizabeth posted a response on Bike Commuters to a dumb op-ed stating that winter bicyclists are “insane” and “suicidal.” I love how her response is so reasonable. Unfortunately, this particular poorly written op-ed is only a drop in the bucket of ridiculous stuff written and said about winter bicyclists.

My own personal response is: calm down and stop being so lame! You sound silly. Winter bicycling is perfectly rational and enjoyable.

So when I returned home from work this evening after bicycling 6 miles in 10 degree temps (-12 C), I made a quick video demonstrating how simple and normal the whole thing is. Pretty dorky, but I’m embracing my inner Liz Lemon in remembrance of 30 Rock.

My bike ride this evening could not have been better. As I cycled along the lakefront, the setting sun turned the sky soft shades of blue and pink over the placid, icy blue lake. Salt covered the trail, rendering the danger of ice moot. I was not cold; I was happy. And here is what I wore.

The morning temperatures this week have varied from 0 degrees to 10 degrees, plus some snow has been falling. For a good idea of how bitterly cold Chicago is, check out this photo below of a warehouse fire in the city.

Photo by Jose M. Osorio

Yeah, that’s cold!

I spent part of the week riding public transportation and part of the week bicycling. Although I have biked in sub-zero weather before, the convenience of the L train lures me to the easy option when I’m feeling lazy. Which is often. A couple friends have been bicycling on days I took the L, so I give my hardcore title up to them. :-)

These photos are in an alley. The streets are much clearer, so biking in snow and ice has not really been an issue.

When I ride my bike on super cold days, there are some key pieces I rely on, as I’ve mentioned before.

Earlier this week, I was sitting in Heritage enjoying a muffin and cappuccino, watching the morning bicycling traffic on Lincoln Avenue, when suddenly I saw my friend Maria (of Po Campo fame) cycle by. I’m always excited to see a friend in the wild, so I texted her. A couple of minutes later she responded that it could not have been her: she was still at home eating breakfast. Either she has a doppelganger (it’s possible!) or I was fooled by someone who looked kinda alike and sported the same Chicago Bicycle Uniform.

As you can see by perusing the portraits on Bike Fancy, there is no set Chicago style (except for editing). But recently I noticed that there are some accessories that show up often on Chicago’s bicycling women.

Of course, not every woman wears these accessories – not even close – but I’ve enjoyed watching them become more common through the years. The prevalence seems to signal that more “regular” people (as opposed to kids looking for an adrenaline rush) are bicycling in the city now.

Have you noticed a sort of bicycle uniform developing where you live?

P.S. Biking home that evening, I spotted my friend Sara cross my path from afar. When I got home I texted her, wondering for a moment whether I would be wrong again, but I was right. I’ve yet to see another blue Pashley Poppy in the city.

Welcome, 2013! As I followed my ritual this morning of pouring a cup of coffee and popping open my macbook to check the weather, I was greeted by this sight:

12 degrees fahrenheit – yeesh. (That’s -11 celsius.) Normal for Chicago winter, but by far the coldest day of this season so far. At least most of last week’s snow has disappeared.

With very little traffic lately due to people being off work for the holidays, I’ve been enjoying my bike commutes along otherwise highly trafficked streets. I certainly did not want to miss out on cycling today. Here I am preparing to set off:

I wore a wool dress with tights. To this I added the following for non-bulky but highly effective layering: wool leggings and wool leg warmers, wool socks and winter boots with warmers, a light windbreaker and trench coat, cashmere scarf, glove liners and ski mittens with warmers, earmuffs and winter helmet, and sunglasses (safety glasses after dark to protect my eyes from cold wind). This is very similar to what I wore in my how-to video for winter cycling.

This worked perfectly. I was like a little moving furnace. My only problem was forgetting to fill my pockets with tissue to blow my nose, which runs like crazy in the extreme cold.

When I left work in the evening, the weather had warmed up to a relatively toasty 22 degrees and I was sweating under my layers by the time I got home.

“Heels on Wheels” is a phrase that makes me cringe when used in the media to describe women riding bikes. Since, you know, women should not be defined by a shoe type. Yet here I go, using the phrase. In my defense, this is only one post in a blog filled with varied topics about women and bicycling. Also, the rhyming is irresistible. :-)

Moving along to the point, a couple of Sundays ago the weather was unseasonably warm and as I headed out the door to a baby shower, I threw on an old pair of heels instead of my usual flats. I rarely wear heals, preferring to tromp around the city with the steadiness of a mountain goat. But I’m going through a wardrobe purge/overhaul of sorts and figured I should give these heels one more chance before throwing them in the ebay pile.

Turns out they are actually quite comfortable, provided I don’t stand for a long time. And biking in them felt pretty bad ass. The shoes created no logistical problems; as you can see in the photo below, there is plenty of contact between the pedal and the sole. So these survive the purge, even though I probably won’t wear them often.

Now I’m drawn to the idea of stiletto heels in theory and what better way to play with this idea – sans wasted money and sore paw pads – than incorporating it into my Fashion Friday collage of imaginary outfits. :-) Now that the weather is straight-up cold, I winterized the concept.

I like this outfit because of the overall librarian feel (carried through to the Bowery Lane bike with its leather, cork, and wood), but with a kick of awesomeness from the heeled suede boots. (Manolos are supposed to be the most comfortable heels, right? Anyone have $600 I can borrow? No? Jerks.) Of course, the stylish leather gloves would have to serve merely as the lining under my ski mittens with warmers.

So what say you: are you a heels on wheels type of person?

p.s. I really want that Everlane tote, made in Texas of Illinois canvas, priced at only $35! (Everlane is my new style love, borne of a very cool concept.)

Deciding to ride a bicycle for transportation in a place like the US, after years of driving a car everywhere like everyone else, required that I step back and really question the system that I’d accepted all my life. Through this, I realized the absurdity of using a ton of metal to carry myself a couple of miles. This one change has naturally led to reconsidering other aspects of modern society.

Fresh on my mind, following Black Friday, is consumerism. I love a good sale and I am far from a minimalist, with my collections of tchotchkes and overflowing bookshelves, but I feel that objects I bring into my home should have meaning and reflect my beliefs. I do not always live up to this standard, but I’ve been making a conscious effort to buy clothing that was made in the USA or another country known for craftsmanship and decent working conditions, like the UK, France, Italy and Canada. I know this is a complicated issue and many lives are improved by factory jobs overseas, but I personally feel better spending my money in a way that does not support corporations’ race to the bottom. (See “Garment Workers Stage Angry Protest After Bangladesh Fire” and the Clean Clothes Campaign.) Of course, I am lucky enough to have the time and resources for this, but so do most Americans. No one is perfect (I’m typing this on an Apple computer, with its Foxconn manufacturing issues, after all) but that should not stop us from thinking about the issue and making small changes where we can.

Finding products that fit my criteria is, unfortunately, harder than it sounds, but prevents me from buying a lot of crap – avoiding fast fashion and focusing on quality over quantity. And over time, I’ve built quite a nice collection. Last Friday, I realized that everything I was wearing was made in the USA. This made me happy. :-)

(Hint on Steven Alan: twice a year he has online sample sales. The fall sale just ended, unfortunately. My skirt was $30 marked down from $225!)

As Mr. Dottie pointed out, the only exception to the outfit above is me: made in Germany. And here is my wonderful mother who made me, visiting Chicago for Thanksgiving. :-)

In regards to bicycles, I have one made in the Netherlands, one in Germany, and one in Taiwan. As much as I absolutely love my Betty Foy in every way, part of me wishes that I saved my money longer to buy a made in the USA frame, like a Sweetpea or ANT.

How do you feel about this issue? Do you have any shopping rules to counter thoughtless consumerism?

If you have tips on favorite businesses that manufacture in the USA, please share in the comments!

The photos reveal a consistency in my fall dressing: cashmere, wool, tights, and leather boots. I know I’ve said this many times before, but these materials are excellent for cold-weather cycling. There is no reason for me to wear technical clothing.

The outfit above is chic – there is no doubt about it in my mind. But at some point stuff gets ridiculously expensive. This week, I saw a gorgeous Chanel boucle suit at a consignment store…in my size…for almost $2,000. Holy mother of god. That is a lot of money for one second-hand outfit. The shop lady kindly informed me that they have layaway – ha! Luckily, the timeless Chanel designs have filtered down to the level where ordinary people like you and me can enjoy clothes that look kinda sorta the same.

The day after I left the consignment store, a friend at work randomly gave me a Chanel-esque wool boucle suit that no longer fits her. So I ended up with a similar outfit for free! Sure, it’s no Chanel, but it is a quality suit made in Canada.

Once I got to work, I traded my winter boots for heels, removed my gloves and scarf, and viola: ready for the office. Except I realize now that my bow was askew. :-)

A co-worker said to me, “You biked in that?!” Really, wool boucle and tweed are excellent for bicycling because the fabric has some give, never wrinkles, and is super cozy for fall and winter. I’m going on the record now to say that a wool boucle skirt suit – in addition to being timelessly chic – is the best outfit for cold-weather cycling. Who’s with me? :-)

Overcast and rainy skies have surrounded me lately. Much of my riding in Amsterdam took place under damp mist and yesterday a heavy rain fell in Chicago, causing me to tuck Coco in my office for the night and take the L train home. Alas, I was caught without a coat to fend off the sudden cold and rain. If I could do my Thursday morning preparations over again (with dream clothes/bike collection), I would opt for something like this European-inspired rain outfit. Why not, right? :)

I hope all of you either have been staying dry or enjoying the wet weather in style!

Today I feel like indulging in some flights of fancy. The result is my dream outfit. This is by no means a shopping guide, simply an expression of my aesthetic at the moment. This lushly beautiful Stella McCartney dress is waaaaaay too rich for my blood. But there are some attainable luxuries, such as striking nail polish and a romantic hair style. Also, I am in love with this Bloom Theory camera strap and will have to figure out how to make my own out of whatever scraps I can find at JoAnn’s. :-)

I could easily ride a bike in this outfit, especially a lovely upright Velorbis, while enjoying the final remaining days of tights-free weather.

Welcome to October! It’s hard to believe that September is already over and fall is seriously here. The weather in Chicago is cooling down substantially and in response I pulled out the (sometimes fingerless) gloves, cashmere, and jeans.

This is a typical fall outfit, although for now the sweater comes off at a stop light early in the ride.

I’m happy for the change in seasons – in fact, October is my favorite month! How are you handling the transition?

About this blog

As two women who practice city cycling with style and think you can too, we started this blog to share our stories, learn more about cycling and encourage others to rediscover the fun of riding a bike. All opinions and reviews are our own, and we are not paid to provide them. Check the "About us" page for more details.